SAR COORDINATES

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Community/Other Events

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 Planned Training Sessions (Coming this Year)

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?                If you would like to volunteer to run a training session, or if you have a training session request contact

Any Board Member or Don Johnson 

Italics = Sign-up required to attend this training                                          

* See following notes:

P        To reserve use of squad ATV, contact Don Johnson at 928-474-5335

 Jacket, gloves, boots, helmet, and eye protection required to operate Squad ATV

Squad Web Site:  www.trsar.org

Planned Fundraising Events for Raffle Ticket Sales

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Pine /Strawberry Arts & Crafts Festivals - Pine AZ

7 - June - Saturday Time 0900 - 1600

8 - June - Sunday Time 0900 - 1600
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Strawberry Festival - Pine AZ

4 - July – Friday         Time:  0800 - 1700

5 - July – Saturday    Time:  0800 - 1700

6 - July – Sunday       Time:  0800 - 1600

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Pine /Strawberry Arts & Crafts Festival - Pine AZ

30 - August – Saturday         Time:  0800 - 1700

31 - August – Sunday            Time:  0800 - 1600

Business Cards for Active Members

All active members are permitted to have business cards with your SAR info on them. If you do not have them yet, or if you have used up the ones you had, contact Mike Taylor to place your order. They are nice to have when you are doing any Squad activities, and the best part is they are free. A common use for them is to hand out to family members of the search/rescue subject.

Email miket@trsar.org or call 978-8009.

Don’t forget; the meetings this month are June 10th for the Board and June 12th for the General Meeting.

Cool Stuff for the Outdoors...

Summer is here and keeping adequately hydrated is as important as ever.   Here is a convenient new product that solves a lot of your water carrying needs.  It is called the "Better Bottle" system from Camelbak. 

 You are probably familiar with Camelbak's line of hydration pouch reservoirs and backpacks.  They do a wonderful job of allowing a SAR member to keep hydrated without having to stop and fumble for a water bottle.  I used to carry water bottles but never got a chance to drink because we are usually on the go and I was using both hands to carry rope bags, equipment or the stokes/litter.  I just didn't have time to stop, take my pack off, open it up, take a drink, replace the bottle, and put my pack back on.  With the Camelbak system I can drink as often as I like while on the move.  The key to the whole system is the hands-free drinking tube with the bite valve that is always right there on your shoulder ready for you to take a sip of water. 

 As good as the traditional Camelbak system is there are a couple of drawbacks.  One drawback is that I have to take the time to fill the pouch with cold water just before I go out on a call.  It is one more thing that takes time to do when you are trying to get out of the house and respond to a call.  Another drawback is when you have to change packs in the field or refill the system... it takes extra time and care to pour fresh water into the system and/or switch everything over.  Finally, It is just one more pack to put on over my rope gear if we have a rope rescue.  Oh yes, and cleaning it can be a chore.

 The solution to some of these problems is the "Better Bottle"*.  It is a Nalgene* type drinking bottle with a Camelbak bite valve on it.  But what really makes the Better Bottle functional is the hands-free drinking-tube/bite-valve that can be attached so that it functions just like a traditional Camelbak pouch system.  The lids also have an attachment point that can be clipped to a pack, rope harness or even a belt loop and the Camelbak lids can be used with standard Nalgene* bottles.

 Now you have a system where you can carry as much water as you want in .75 or 1.0 liter increments by stocking extra bottles.  You can clip them anywhere you want on any pack or harness you decide to wear.  You can keep multiple bottles stored in the refrigerator ready to go at all times.  You can keep extra bottles cold or even frozen in an ice chest in your car while you are out on a mission.  You can easily change bottles in the field by taking the bite tube lid off of an empty and putting it on a fresh bottle clipped to your pack.  You can even carry different pre-bottled drinks and switch back and forth in the field ie. water and Gatorade.  When you come back home, just put any unused bottles of water or drinks back in the refrigerator for next time.  Finally, the whole system except the drinking tube can be cleaned and sanitized in a regular dishwasher.  How easy is that?!

 For more information go to www.rei.com/product/776896   Be sure to click on the "related products" tab for information on the "Hands-Free Bottle Adaptor".  Also click on the "Customer Reviews" tab for other users opinions on this product.  If you want to just buy the lids to use on your own Nalgene* bottles go to www.rei.com/product/749397  Contrary to the review on this page, I have not had any leaking problems with the Camelbak lids on my Nalgene* bottles. 

Camelbak products can also be purchased at other places like BassPro, Cabella's, Sportsman's Warehouse, Campmor, etc.  Now, I'm not ready to completely give up my traditional Camelbak pouch pack but this system makes a great alternative and definitely has some advantages.

 That's some Cool Stuff for the Outdoors!  

* Lately there has been some controversy about a chemical called BPA in polycarbonate drinking bottles.  Camelbak has announced that all of their bottles manufactured after May 1st, 2008 will be BPA Free.  Nalgene has also announced that they will be phasing out their use of plastics containing BPA.   Nalgene has also stated that they stand by their polycarbonate bottles that do contain BPA and that they are safe.  Nalgene does make a BPA Free bottle now.  It is their "milky white" HDPE Nalgene bottle.  More information can be found on the web under "BPA" or at www.camelbak.com and www.nalgene-outdoor.com

 Greg Reed 521 

Computer Tips, Techniques, Rants, Raves, and Netiquette

Submitted by Les Hulse

Almost everyone using a computer has either a CD reader/writer or a DVD reader/writer or both. However, I know many users have trouble making their own CDs and DVDs because I get calls asking for help. I will assume that you know the difference between a CD and a DVD, so this month we will look at how to create your own CDs and DVDs with the best chances of success.

If my assumption is wrong, let the editor know and we will talk about the different kinds of CDs and DVDs next month. 

To start things off, I will give you the basic information – then I will finish up with my opinions (opinions are free and are worth what you pay for them).

To make your own CDs and DVS, you need 3 things: (1) a “burner”, (2) proper software, and (3) blank CDs and/or DVDs.

1 – First of all, if you want to make your own CDs and/or DVDs, make sure that you have a writer (or “burner”). If your device says CD-ROM or DVD-ROM on the front of the drawer, you have a reader – this means that you cannot create your own CDs/DVDs. If your device has the letters “RW” on the front of the drawer, you have a writer. This means that you can create your own CDs and/or DVDs. To summarize the drawer label:

            CD-ROM – can only read CDs

            DVD-ROM – can only read DVDs (and CDs, usually)

            CD-RW – can read and write CDs

            DVD-RW – can read and write DVDs (and CDs, usually)

 So if you have something with the “RW” label, you are in business.

 2 – CD/DVD creating software is needed for making your own CDs and DVDs. There are several different companies that make “burning” software (Nero and Roxio/Sonic are the big names) and each one has strengths and weaknesses. Jack Quinn (our web master) has found 3 different software packages that are small, FREE, and work very well. You can get them at:

 All of these products, as well as the ones that cost $$$, can do the most common CD and/or DVD creating jobs.

3 – There are so many different brands of CD and DVD blank media available in stores and on the web that it is next to impossible to make recommendations, but you will seldom go wrong using a major brand. Whatever brand you choose, make sure that you get the proper blank media for the job you want to do.

The major designations you will find on blank media are: CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-R, DVD-RW,

DVD+R, and DVD+RW.

The letters “CD” mean that it can store up to 700 MB of data or 74 minutes of music.

The letters “DVD” mean that is can store up to 4.7 GB of data or 2 hours of movies.

The trailing “R” means that the media can only be used once (a single burn).

The trailing “RW” means that the media is re-writable – it can be erased and used again.

DVD media can also be labeled “dual-layer”. This means that the capacity is doubled, but requires a special burner that is just now starting to appear in new computers.

So, now that we have the basics out of the way, let’s look at some suggestions for burning CDs and DVDs. The comments that follow are taken from my experience – your mileage may vary.

Tips to avoid creating “coasters” (bad disks):

1 – It is a good idea to have several re-writable CDs and/or DVDs available for testing. If you are just starting to make your own disks or want to try something new, practice on a re-writable (RW) disk – if you make errors, the disk can be erased and re-used. When you have it right, you can create your finished disk on a write-once (R) disk for safe storage.

2 – Before running any CD/DVD burning software, turn off the following:  screen saver, anti-virus, firewall, internet connection (disconnect it), and other programs you are running. You do not want another program to interrupt the burning process – if there is an interruption, your chance of creating a “coaster” goes up dramatically.

3 – When you start burning a disk, don’t do anything else on the PC. This is a good time to step back, move away from the keyboard, get a cup of coffee, smell the flowers, and just let the program run to completion.

 4 – Keep your fingers off the recording side of the disk. Oils from your skin will cause distortion from the laser beam resulting in bad data. This applies to both recording and playback.

 5 – No matter how high your burner speed is rated, burn disks at a slower speed. I use a recording speed of 4X when burning disks, even though my burner can write up to 16X. The slower speed will allow a consistent rate of burn and allow the laser to keep a better focus.

 6 – Use a felt-tipped pen to label your disks. Do NOT use ball point pens. Pressing a ball point pen to label a disk could damage the recording layer of the disk. If possible, make sure the ink in the felt-tipped marker is water-based. Non-water based inks sometimes penetrate the plastic surface of the disk and mess up the dye in the recording layer.

 7 – If you use a paper label, make sure the adhesive is water-based. Again, some other chemical-based adhesives can penetrate the plastic and mess up your data. Also, make sure the label is round and covers the top of the disk. Using a rectangular label on one side of the disk will cause playback problems because the disk will not be balanced.

 Using labels is a matter of choice. If the adhesive weakens, the label can come off in your player – causing all sorts of problems (ask the editor).

 8 – At the end of your recording session, make sure the process is “finalized”. This means that the disk will have the necessary information written that will allow it to be played on other devices. Data cannot be added to a write-once disk.

 9 – Put your finished disks in protective containers (plastic cases, paper sleeves, etc) and store them vertically. Storing or leaving disks lay flat can lead to scratches, nicks, and dirt accumulation – which leads to the disk eventually becoming unusable. This is a good time to pick up all those disks that are scattered around your work area.

 10 – Defragment your hard drive before burning. If your computer has to hunt for pieces of the files it is burning to a disk, the chances of creating “coaster” increases.

 All of the suggestions listed above will help you to make good CDs and DVDs for storing data, photos, music, etc. for many years. If you want to make movie DVDs, you will need some specialty software (which is a whole topic in itself). The software on your PC, or listed above, will most likely let you copy CDs and DVDs provided there is no copy protection written to the disk.

Have fun.

Question: Do any of you find this section useful?

We can rant and rave about many topics, but do not know if it is appreciated. Also, we will most likely choose topics that “tick us off” and ignore the ones that you may be interested in. We can give you our opinion on just about anything (opinions are cheap).

So let us know if this section is useful, and if you would like us to tear into some topic, just tell us.

Send any comments and/or suggestions to the editor; Mike – address at bottom of newsletter.

Website

Tonto Rim SAR Members can now have your very own email address through our site. Just contact our Webmaster at jack@jackswebs.com  to arrange for it, no cost to you or us.

Unrelated SAR news

Utah woman burned in Yellowstone hot pool

The Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 05/30/2008 02:39:07 PM MDT

A Utah woman was burned in Yellowstone National Park after stepping into a previously unknown hot pool.

Park officials say Jeanette Hogan had burns on one of her ankles and lower leg after the incident Thursday in the Artists' Paintpots area, about two and half miles south of Norris Junction.

Hogan was hiking on an established dirt trail with family members when she stepped in a rainwater puddle along the trail's edge. The crust gave way to a hot pool beneath.  Park geologists say the water was about 171 degrees.

Hogan was taken to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls, where a spokeswoman says she was treated and released. Her age and hometown weren't immediately available.

The Artists' Paintpots area in the park has been temporarily closed.